Training & Professional Development

eavesdropping

Another term for sniffing. However, eavesdropping can include more than just capturing and recording network traffic. Eavesdropping also includes recording or listening to audio communications, faxes, radio signals, and so on.

Economic Espionage Act of 1996

A law that states that anyone found guilty of stealing trade secrets from a US corporation with the intention of benefiting a foreign government or agent may be fined up to $500,000 and imprisoned for up to 15 years and that anyone found guilty of stealing trade secrets under other circumstances may be fined up toA law that states that anyone found guilty of stealing trade secrets from a US corporation with the intention of benefiting a foreign government or agent may be fined up to $500,000 and imprisoned for up to 15 years and that anyone found guilty of stealing trade secrets under other circumstances may be fined up to $250,000 and imprisoned for up to 10 years.

education

A detailed endeavor where students and users learn much more than they actually need to know to perform their work tasks. Education is most often associated with users pursuing certification or seeking job promotion.

El Gamal

The explanation of how the mathematical principles behind the Diffie-Hellman key exchange algorithm could be extended to support an entire public key cryptosystem used for the encryption and decryption of messages.

electromagnetic interference (EMI)

A type of electrical noise that can do more than just cause problems with how equipment functions; it can also interfere with the quality of communications, transmissions, and playback.

electronic access control (EAC)

A type of smart lock that uses a credential reader, an electromagnet, and a door-closed sensor.

Electronic Codebook (ECB)

The simplest encryption mode to understand and the least secure. Each time the algorithm processes a 64-bit block, it simply encrypts the block using the chosen secret key. This means that if the algorithm encounters the same block multiple times, it produces the same encrypted block.

Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA)

The law that makes it a crime to invade an individual's electronic privacy. It protects against the monitoring of email and voice mail communications and prevents providers of those services from making unauthorized disclosures of their content.

electronic discovery (e-Discovery)

In legal proceedings, each side has a duty to preserve evidence related to the case and, through the discovery process, share information with their adversary in the proceedings. This discovery process applies to both paper records and electronic records, and the electronic discovery (or e-Discovery) process facilitates the processing of electronic information for disclosure.

electronic vaulting

A storage scenario in which database backups are transferred to a remote site in a bulk transfer fashion. The remote location may be a dedicated alternative recovery site (such as a hot site) or simply an offsite location managed within the company or by a contractor for the purpose of maintaining backup data.

electronically erasable PROM (EEPROM)

A storage system that uses electric voltages delivered to the pins of the chip to force erasure. EEPROMs can be erased without removal from the computer, giving them much greater flexibility than standard PROM and EPROM chips.

elliptic curve cryptography

A new branch of public key cryptography that offers similar security to established public key cryptosystems at reduced key sizes.

elliptic curve group

Each elliptic curve has a corresponding elliptic curve group made up of the points on the elliptic curve along with the point O, located at infinity. Two points within the same elliptic curve group (P and Q) can be added together with an elliptic curve addition algorithm.

embedded system

A computer implemented as part of a larger system. The embedded system is typically designed around a limited set of specific functions in relation to the larger product of which it's a component. It may consist of the same components found in a typical computer system, or it may be a microcontroller (an integrated chip with on-board memory and peripheral ports).

employee

Often referred to as the user when discussing IT issues. See also user.

employment agreement

A document that outlines an organization's rules and restrictions, security policy, and acceptable use and activities policies; details the job description; outlines violations and consequences; and defines the length of time the position is to be filled by the employee.

Encapsulating Security Payload (ESP)

An element of IPSec that provides encryption to protect the confidentiality of transmitted data but can also perform limited authentication.

encapsulation

The process of adding a header and footer to a PDU as it travels down the OSI model layers.

encrypt

The process used to convert a message into cipher text.

encrypted virus

A virus that uses cryptographic techniques to avoid detection. In their outward appearance, they are quite similar to polymorphic viruses-each infected system has a virus with a different signature. However, they do not generate these modified signatures by changing their code; instead, they alter the way they are stored on the disk.

encryption

The art and science of hiding the meaning or intent of a communication from recipients not meant to receive it.

end user

See user.

endpoint security

The concept that each individual device must maintain local security whether or not its network or telecommunications channels provide or offer security.The concept that each individual device must maintain local security whether or not its network or telecommunications channels provide or offer security. Sometimes this concept is expressed as "The end device is responsible for its own security."

end-to-end encryption

An encryption algorithm that protects communications between two parties (in other words, a client and a server) and is performed independently of link encryption. An example of this would be the use of Privacy Enhanced Mail (PEM) toAn encryption algorithm that protects communications between two parties (in other words, a client and a server) and is performed independently of link encryption. An example of this would be the use of Privacy Enhanced Mail (PEM) to pass a message between a sender and a receiver. This protects against an intruder who might be monitoring traffic on the secure side of an encrypted link or traffic sent over an unencrypted link.

enrollment

The process of establishing a new user identity or authentication factor on a system. Secure enrollment requires physical proof of a person's identity or authentication factor. Generally, if the enrollment process takes longer than two minutes, the identification or authorization mechanism (typically a biometric device) is not approved.

enterprise extended mode

The use of multiple wireless access points to support a single wireless network over a larger geographic area than could be supported by a single wireless access point.

entity

A subject or an object.

erasable PROM (EPROM)

A PROM chip that has a small window through which the illumination of a special ultraviolet light causes the contents of the chip to be erased. After this process is complete, the end user can burn new information into the EPROM.

erasing

A delete operation against a file, a selection of files, or the entire media. In most cases, the deletion or erasure process removes only the directory or catalog link to the data. The actual data remains on the drive.

escalation of privilege

Any attack or exploit that focuses on increasing access of a user account from standard to administrative privileges.

Escrowed Encryption Standard

A failed government attempt to create a back door to all encryption solutions. The solution employed the Clipper chip, which used the Skipjack algorithm.

espionage

The malicious act of gathering proprietary, secret, private, sensitive, or confidential information about an organization for the express purpose of disclosing and often selling that data to a competitor or other interested organization (such as a foreign government).

Ethernet

A common shared media LAN technology.

ethical hackers

Those trained in responsible network security methodology, with a philosophy toward nondestructive and nonintrusive testing; ethical hackers attack security systems on behalf of their owners seeking to identify and document vulnerabilities so that they may be remediated before malicious hackers can exploit them. Ethical hackers use the same methods to test security that unethical ones do but report what they find rather than seek to turn them to their advantage.

ethical hacking

See penetration testing.

ethics

The rules that govern personal conduct. Several organizations have recognized the need for standard ethics rules, or codes, and have devised guidelines for ethical behavior. These rules are not laws but are minimum standards for professional behavior. They should provide you with a basis for sound, professional, ethical judgment.

evidence

In the context of computer crime, any hardware, software, or data that you can use to prove the identity and actions of an attacker in a court of law.

excessive privilege(s)

More access, privilege, or permission than a user's assigned work tasks dictate. If a user account is discovered to have excessive privilege, the additional and unnecessary benefits should be immediately curtailed.

exit interview

An aspect of a termination policy. The terminated employee is reminded of their legal responsibilities to prevent the disclosure of confidential and sensitive information.

expectation maximization (EM)

A data mining technique that develops models of normal user behavior based on a user's affiliation with the organization, the distance between the data center and the user's physical location, the day of the week, the hour of the day, and other attributes.

expert opinion

A type of evidence consisting of the opinions and facts offered by an expert. An expert is someone educated in a field and who currently works in that field.

expert system

A system that seeks to embody the accumulated knowledge of humankind on a particular subject and apply it in a consistent fashion to future decisions.

exposure

The condition of being exposed to asset loss because of a threat. Exposure involves being susceptible to the exploitation of a vulnerability by a threat agent or event.

exposure factor (EF)

The percentage of loss that an organization would experience if a specific asset were violated by a realized risk. Also known as loss potential.

Extensible Access Control Markup Language (XACML)

A markup language used to define access control policies within an XML format, and it commonly implements role- based access controls. It helps provide assurances to all members in a federation that they are granting the same level of access to different roles.

Extensible Markup Language (XML)

A markup language that defines rules of document formatting and encoding that is both human and machine readable.

extranet

A cross between the Internet and an intranet. An extranet is a section of an organization's network that has been sectioned off so that it acts as an intranet for the private network but also serves information to a limited number of specific outsiders. Often access into an extranet from the Internet requires a VPN connection. Extranets are often used in B2B applications, between customers and suppliers.